Second Chances
by stardustfalling
Summary: During a world of the living assignment, Rangiku meets a person who died, then died again. Therefore, they should be utterly, irrevocably dead. Right? (Pairing: GinRan with hints of others)
1. Mistakes and Amnesia

**I'm alive! With a new and improved multi-chapter fic about Gin and Rangiku! I love them so much. Also, with an absence of OCs! I know this isn't the most original idea ever, but I wanted to do my take on it, and I really enjoy writing this. I have a bunch of chapters written already (so you don't have to wait months for them), but I'm still not really sure how it's going to end! Sooo...**

**Le Disclaimer: Bleach and all associated characters, locations, and other elements does not belong to me, it belongs to the wonderful Kubo-san. That being said, the story does belong to me, so don't steal it.**

**Le Warnings: Language and some OOC. Gin's accent is also very difficult for me.**

**Le Reviews: Post a review if you feel so inclined; they make me happy happy happy. Criticisms and spelling edits are also appreciated, though I have been experimenting with grammar and punctuation a bit, lately. Flames will be used to light candles! Enjoy the story!**

* * *

The Universe had made a mistake. A colossally stupid, horrible mistake.

And Matsumoto Rangiku was staring straight at it.

It happened to come in the form of a man who had died and then died again. Which meant that he should be completely, utterly, irrevocably dead.

Although if Ichigo was the standard the universe went by nowadays, she could understand.

She swallowed. This was going to be hard.

She walked _non_chalantly past the man sitting on the bench in the park, but for some reason, after she passed, she could barely stop herself from looking back. As she passed, she felt a breeze against the side of her back, and a noise like a clink.

Rangiku hadn't realized she had been holding her breath until she was seven steps past him, and she exhaled slowly, deliberately.

"Miss?"

She froze. His voice.

She turned, despite knowing that the voice was likely not directed at her. He was staring straight at her, a slightly perplexed look on his face. He wasn't smiling; that was strange, for sure. However, he actually looked confused, and somehow, that was refreshing.

It reminded her of the miserable perfect days in the _Rukongai_, just the two of them, when he had facial expressions that other people could decipher. She had been able to see the slight variations in his mask, and perhaps Kira had, too, but back then, anyone could tell. He had always kept his eyes closed, though. As long as she remembered.

"Yes?" The word was a soft, round cotton-ball in her mouth, and she swallowed again, repeating her question, louder.

"Yes?"

He smiled, and the old Gin smile was back. Her breath caught in her throat.

"Ya dropped yer wallet."

A sharp inhale; then the involuntary check of hands to the side pocket of her jacket. All of a sudden, she realized what had happened, and her eyes narrowed.

"Gin!" she scolded him, and began walking toward him, trying to feign irritation at his thieving hands, only slowing when she saw his startled expression.

He recovered smoothly.

"So we have met, then."

She stopped then, realizing that, of course, he didn't know her. He couldn't know her. His very existence in the world of the living was such a fluke, that anything more would be asking for a miracle.

So why was it that Rangiku's heart ached a little when he said those words?

"No... No we haven't..." she started as she snatched her wallet from him. "I mean yes! Yes we have, but you wouldn't remember. It was... a long time ago." She opted for something closer to the truth. After all, the Winter War was already six years in the past.

"Oh really?" He grinned, a dastardly grin. "I have an excellent memory. 'Specially fer pretty girls like you, Rangiku."

Now it was his turn to inhale sharply. "What didya say yer name was, miss?"

"I didn't. But it's Rangiku. Matsumoto Rangiku."

"Well ain't that funny? I must've met ya 'fore I bonked m'head."

Rangiku had abruptly turned and started walking away after he said her name without thinking, but he had stood up and followed her, talking all the while.

"'Bonked your head'? What do you mean?"

He smiled apologetically. "I was lyin' about the memory, Ran-chan." Rangiku winced at the pet name, hoping he hadn't noticed. He had, but he chose not to comment.

"I've got amnesia, Rangiku-san. 'Woke up in a gutter smellin' like cats and booze, and not in a good way." He wagged his finger back and forth at her. She smiled, against her will.

"Goodness, Gin; don't call me that. It makes me feel old. Just Rangiku is fine."

He grinned, "Rangiku it is then. Anyhow. 'Woke up, didn't remember anything. If somebody says certain words, I get feelin's about 'em, but no real memories.

"Like, you fer instance. Now that I said yer name, Ran-ch–Rangiku, I've got a feelin' that you wouldn't mind me takin' you into this cafe and buyin' you a coffee and some dried persimmons."

She laughed and allowed him to steer her into a small cafe on the outskirts of Karakura Town, where they chatted for a few hours. There were some awkward moments, but for the most part, it was comfortable. The one small thing that disturbed her was that he didn't seem to have any sort of _reiatsu_ at all.

Meaning she couldn't track him. Which was totally not a creepy thought at all.

After Rangiku's few hours were up, though, and her Soul Pager started becoming more active, she was forced to begin extricating herself from the disturbingly comfortable moment talking in a coffee shop with Gin.

"I'll see ya again sometime, Rangiku."

She paused, wanting this moment to be forever. It was dark outside, and she was sitting across from Gin at a table inside a coffee shop where the sign on the door had long been flipped to 'Closed.' The table was littered with eleven or twelve empty coffee cups, more than half of them hers, and two half-eaten bags of dried persimmons. She was laughing and happy, and so was he. Neither of them were drunk, and Aizen wasn't even a presence in the room. The young man behind the counter had gone off to loudly wash dishes in the back, and the hours could not drag on long enough.

"I hope so."

"Here, call me, Ran-chan." She barely noticed the renewed use of the name as he dragged her wrist across the table and started writing on it with a permanent black marker.

"Gin! What on earth are you doing!?"

He laughed as she snatched her hand away, smudging the six and turning the last digit, a nine, into a sort of funny, drawn out 'g.' He opened his eyes briefly, then stood up to leave, throwing a farewell casually over his shoulder.

"Bye-bye, Ran-chan."

* * *

**Yay! Hope you liked chapter one!**


	2. Measure Your Life

**Back with a new chapter! Actually, this is kind of two, but the first one was too short to publish on its own...**

**Standard Disclaimer and review statements apply...**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

The next time she saw him, he didn't see her. He had a bit more _reiatsu_, but otherwise, everything was the same.

He was sitting on a random bench, in a park this time, not the city.

Rangiku paused, in soul form, silently castigating herself for suddenly wishing she was in a _gigai_. His face was calm, and he appeared to be watching birds.

She stayed a fraction of a second longer than necessary before the Hollow roared again and she resumed her flash step.

She had been arguing with herself as of late, and recently, Hitsugaya-_taicho_ had begun commenting on the fact that she was mumbling to herself while doing paperwork. This was strange both because she was actually doing paperwork and because of her unusual preoccupation, and the combined symptoms prompted her captain to ask if she needed to take a trip to the Fourth. Rangiku simply smiled and continued the paperwork.

The arguments had to do with, of course, Gin. Whether or not to see him again, that is. The phone number wasn't a problem; she had accidentally washed it off after about a week of dodging her friends' questions about it and had panicked for a moment before realizing she had memorized it ages ago.

No, it was at a deeper level than that. She had tried to convince herself that the final, perfect conversation in a cafe that was already closed had been the closure she had been searching for, and she had almost managed it, until she was sent out into the world of the living again.

And now, here she was, pausing, teetering, on the precipice. Stuck between flash steps. A breeze rustled the leaves in the trees, and Gin looked over his shoulder, frowning slightly and looking around for something.

Someone. Rangiku admonished herself for the thought, rushing away and trying to ignore the practically magnetic pull towards a man whose presence she could feel again.

She shook her head and slashed the Hollow in front of her with unusual ferocity.

Geez, Gin.

* * *

The third time she saw him, she grumbled at the fact that she had begun keeping track of her life based on the times that she saw him in the world of the living. Not that she hadn't been waiting for him.

Which she wasn't. Pfft, no. Certainly not.

No, Rangiku had been sitting in the cafe for half an hour on her day of leave because coffee was good. Really good.

The same guy was at the counter today. Rangiku took a moment to look at him, as she had been rather preoccupied the last time she was in the cafe. Stubble, a nice haircut, and one hoop earring. He looked like a decent guy. She might have even pursued him if she hadn't—

_Ding!_

Rangiku whirled in her seat as the door opened again, settling poutily back into her seat as a middle-aged woman with a perm and a child glued to her skirt walked in.

The man at the counter smirked, and she narrowed her eyes at him, wondering what exactly was so amusing.

"What?"

He smiled and turned to polish some glasses. He turned his head to look back at her, continuing to clean the glasses.

"Just call him." He smirked again and turned back.

Rangiku almost fell off her bar stool, regaining her balance and glaring at him. He turned, and she opened her mouth to retort that she was not waiting for someone, but he had already begun attending to the perm and her son.

Rangiku stuck her tongue out at him, reminding herself that she really wasn't waiting for anyone. If someone interesting happened to come in, though, she wouldn't be at all averse to talking to him. Them. Talking to them. Whoever it was.

After ten more minutes and one and a half coffees later, she caved and pulled out her cell phone, making sure to shoot an extremely dark look at Mr. know-it-all the barrista.

She had begun clicking the numbers into her Soul Pager already when the door opened again.

_Ding!_

She turned, wearily, once more and came close to toppling over the second time that day as Gin walked in. He waved once and walked to the counter, ordering in a quiet voice.

Disappointment began to gnaw at Rangiku's stomach, and she moodily stared at the collection of coffee cups on the table. The same table. He wasn't interested, then.

Therefore, she was pleasantly surprised when he came over with two coffee cups in hand and set one down in front of her, slumped over on the bar stool like a man in the very throes of depression.

"Gin?" One eyebrow raised, she blew on her coffee, taking a cautious sip. Ooh! It was her seasonal favorite: a pumpkin spice latte with extra vanilla. Wait.

He sighed dramatically and looked up at her with a droopy-eyed, petulant look that caught her somewhere between laughter and wanting to console him.

"Raan-chaaan! You've been gone for soooo loooooong..."

She did laugh then, explaining that her work didn't allow her to get away very often. It was a very strict schedule, she told him solemnly. He kept the pout, though, and eventually she found herself relenting and telling him she would find some way to come more often.

She began telling him what little she could about work then, explaining how she was a lieutenant where she worked, which was why she was always busy.

He in turn told her about a place he had started working at that sold appliances. He described loudly and in great detail the many benefits of space heaters, to the other customers' bemusement. Rangiku found herself laughing, again, at his antics.

"... Probably their biggest benefit is that ya' can take 'em anywhere y'want to! Actually, I don't work in th' front. Apparently my smile's... how did they say it? Off-putting."

"Your smile isn't off-putting for me. It was a little alarming the first time I saw you, but it made me more curious than anything..." She trailed off, realizing she had just broken her number one rule. Do not speak about the past with Gin.

He frowned.

"How did we meet, Ran-chan?"

She coughed, startled by the question.

"Well... I was starving. On the streets. And you gave me a dried persimmon."

He smiled, then. "I knew there was a reason ya liked dried persimmons! And it had somethin' to do with me, too."

"Ran-chan." All of a sudden, his voice became serious, and he stared at her straight in the eyes. Your eyes are such a pretty color... she thought, but was interrupted by his next question.

"Was I a bad guy?"

Rangiku almost choked on her coffee. "What?"

He closed his eyes again. "Ya' never talk about th' past, Ran-chan. Did I do somethin' bad that ya don't want ta talk about?"

"U-um..." she stuttered, trying to find the right thing to say. "Well..."

A new thought crossed his mind, and a pained expression flashed briefly across his face.

"Did I hurt you? Ran-chan?"

A silence filled the spaces between them with half-spoken fears and words unsaid. She wanted so desperately to tell him, but she also, so selfishly, wanted to keep in just the same as now. Plus...

"Ya don't have to tell me, Ran-chan." He broke her train of thoughts gently, tucking a stray lock of hair back behind her ear. Suddenly, he brightened.

"Never mind that, Ran-chan. How would ya like ta go on a date with me?"

She started and blushed a bit. Then she smiled, almost shyly (though Matsumoto Rangiku wasn't shy about dates, not at all).

"I'd love to, Gin."

He smiled the first real smile she had seen from anyone all day in answer.

* * *

**FYI, they are not in a Starbucks, I just like the idea of a pumpkin spice latte.**


	3. Dancing Through Life

**Back! Sorry about the delay, I just started winter break and so I was being rather lazy.**

**Consider this as disclaimed as the last chapter, and also, the standard review statement applies. Enjoy!**

* * *

Rangiku smiled nervously at herself in the mirror in her quarters. She had put on a nice shirt, flattering jeans, and even some jewelry, and she was irrationally nervous.

"I really think you should just tell me who it is already," Hinamori whined from the other side of the door. "I mean, you are making such a fuss about him and all."

Rangiku tittered nervously. "No... No, I don't think that would be such a good idea."

"At least tell me about him. I mean, really Rangiku-san. You even asked leave for tonight."

Rangiku opened the door and walked out. Hinamori gasped and jumped up from the bed.

"You look so pretty! You even wore jewelry!" Her face suddenly turned dead serious. "So. Tell me."

Rangiku laughed.

"I'll tell you about him later, but I have to go." She smiled, and Hinamori pouted.

"Fine, then. Go. But you have to tell me all about it when you come back."

Rangiku smiled and waved. She _shunpo_-ed to the main _Senkaimon_ and opened it. She stepped out into the cool night air and breathed deeply through her nose. Picking up her _gigai_ at Ichigo's (to his eternal annoyance and Rukia's eternal laughter), she hailed a cab and drove to the front of the coffee shop.

He was waiting, as expected, having cleaned up rather nicely himself. He wore a dove gray suit jacket over a black t-shirt and dark jeans. Rangiku quirked an eyebrow. Before she could call out to him, he turned, grinning.

"Heya, Ran-chan."

Gin hailed another cab, and he had already begun telling her about his latest appliance-related escapades by the time they reached their destination.

"Ooh!"

It was a Greek restaurant, not very common in this district of Japan.

"How did you find it? I thought I knew every Greek restaurant within walking distance!"

He smiled at her obvious delight.

"I found it when I was first wanderin' around. Come on. They have th' absolute best Pastitsio."

Rangiku rushed in, dragging Gin behind her, and they spent the evening talking about anything and everything. Rangiku was glowing with a happy radiance that had left her after the final showdown in the real Karakura Town, and Gin's face was open and shining with something she couldn't quite put her finger on. It was beautiful, whatever it was.

"So, Ran-chan, tell me about yer family."

She faltered, not sure what to say. "Well..."

"I don't really have a family... I'm an orphan..."

Gin's smile dropped away, and he looked at her with sympathy. "'m an orphan, m'self, Ran-chan. Sorry."

She brushed his apology off. "It's fine, really. You were my..." she trailed off again, internally smacking herself for bringing up the past again. That was like asking for the unfortunate questions that she was putting off for as long as possible.

A blinding smile suddenly split across Gin's face. "_I_ was yer family?!"

His smile was contagious, and she found herself blushing a bit, for no apparent reason. "... Yeah. You were."

"Well that's great, Ran-chan!" She was almost surprised she didn't have to squint when looking at his smile, it was so bright. "Why didn't ya want to... oh." His face took on a thoughtful expression. "So I did do somethin' bad."

"We don't have to talk about it, though." Rangiku's breath and voice were rushed. Her hands clutched at the napkin in her hand, wringing it out.

"Rangiku... no. I'll ask ya later."

The smile was back, and they easily lapsed into less dangerous conversation again, stopping only when music started playing and the dance floor opened. It was a rather nice restaurant, after all.

A strange look came onto Gin's face, then, and he stood. "Wanna dance, Ran-chan?" He glanced at her out of the corner of his eyes and suppressed the smile.

She was momentarily caught off guard, and her breath hitched. "Of course."

As she whirled in a colorful, dizzying euphoria around the dance floor, she was only able to formulate one breathless thought before she was lost to him and the music:

_I never knew Gin was such a romantic._

* * *

The night ended with a shared slice of cheesecake and a quick, stolen kiss after the cab dropped them off back in front of the coffee shop. Rangiku stood stock-still in front of the window for a solid minute before blushing bright red to the tips of her toes and practically skipping back to Ichigo's place to drop off her _gigai_.

In fact, she was humming when she stepped out of the _Dangai_ and back into _Seireitei_ at twelve o' clock. The crisp air invigorated her, and for once, she loved the feeling of sobriety in the night.

* * *

**So, I know this one is short, but I'll post another one now to make up for it. Hope you liked it!**


	4. End of Euphoria

**The second chapter of the day. Hope you like it. Standard review statement and Disclaimer apply. **

**Enjoy!**

* * *

"So, Ran-chan," Gin started casually. "Did I ever know a kid named Izuru?"

She froze.

"Excuse me?" It was barely audible on her lips, and Gin's smile dimmed.

"Izuru. Somethin' Izuru. Kito, Kura, Kiro..."

"Kira." She whispered.

He snapped his fingers, and he brightened. "Yeah, that's it! Kira Izuru, lieutenant of the..." He trailed off. "Huh, I almost had somethin' there." He glanced at her sideways.

"Ran-chan?"

The truth of the matter was that Matsumoto Rangiku had been brought to the verge of breaking and telling him everything or falling into a nervous breakdown by those few words. He was remembering.

"Ran-chan? Are ya okay, Ran-chan?"

Unfortunately, it was absolutely crucial that he not remember. She had done some research, and Gin's reincarnation was a fluke that occurred about once every six-hundred years. When there were a large number of _reishi_-dense souls (or just one, incredibly invested or sincere soul) who continued to have strong feelings about a dead shinigami soul, there was a one in nine-million chance that the person would reincarnate because of the manifestation of the spiritual power of the mourning person in a physical form.

"Ran-chan."

The feelings would have to be very strong, and the person(s) mourning/resenting/etc. would suffer a severe drop in spiritual pressure, though it would grow back to its original intensity after a period of one to two months. The reincarnated soul could take the form of a soul in the Rukongai (common), a Hollow (common), or a human (less common). They could also, in extremely rare cases where the mourning soul was bordering on obsessive about the deceased, manifest directly into the soul world of the mourner. This, however, generally led to insanity or some type of mental disorder.

"Ran-chan."

Rangiku had, after the time of Gin's death, suffered an almost catastrophic loss of power for a period of about two days, after which she was discovered passed out behind the Squad Ten barracks and brought to the Fourth. She was put into a hospital room next to Kira, who had been in a similar condition. Obviously, Gin was the manifestation of their thoughts and desires.

The only problem would be if Soul Society discovered him, or if he returned to his not-exactly-scrupulous nature. She also, selfishly, wanted to keep him to herself, and she did not want to cause him pain. Or, there was the possibility that, as in four out of the six reported cases of this phenomenon, he would immediately transform into a Hollow after regaining his memories and reiatsu.

"Ran-chan!" Gin was shaking her slightly by the upper arms, looking at her with concern in his pale eyes.

"Huh?" She blinked, slightly dazed by her train of thought.

"I've been tryin' ta get yer attention fer the past two minutes!"

"Oh, sorry Gin." She shook her head and looked up at him. "What were you saying?"

"I was askin' how little Izuru is doin', but nevermind that... I have somethin' more serious to tell you."

He stared at her straight in the eyes, an unusually serious air surrounding him like a fog, underscoring his next words.

"I want to remember, Rangiku." His words were calm and clear in their pronunciation, resonating inside her head.

"I know ya want me ta stay the same, Ran-chan, and ya don't want me to remember..." He trailed off, letting his eyes unfocus and drift to the side. Suddenly a flash of something like anger crossed his face, though, and he looked back at her pleadingly. "But it's so frustrating, Ran-chan! My whole life is missing! Inaccessible..." He looked almost mournful with the last word.

The barista, who they had learned was named Jonathan and owned a Great Dane named Benny, wordlessly placed two cups of coffee on the table, and Rangiku almost smiled as she pulled out a ten and murmured for him to keep the change. What must he think of them now.

"I know. I'm sorry. Um, how can I... You'll never believe... Ugh." She shoved her head down on the table between her arms. What should she do? Despite her best efforts, her eyes turned glossy with a faint sheen of tears.

"Ran-chan?" She refused to pick her head up.

"Ran-chan?" She shook her head childishly. A tiny sniffle escaped her control.

"No! Ran-chan, I'm sorry! Don't cry, don't cry, I'm so sorry! Aagh!"

She shot upwards, staring in horror as he fisted his hands in his strange, silver hair and began to shake uncontrollably, tears (the one thing he had never let her see) streaming down his own face. Jonathan looked up in alarm, and Rangiku rushed over to the other side of the table to comfort him, guiding him gently out of the coffee shop and into a nearby park and trying to ignore the wild look in his eyes. His body quaked and shuddered as she half-supported him to the base of a large oak.

She sat down in the grass next to him, under the shady tree. He had stopped speaking, but he still shook, his hands fisting and unfisting beside him. Eventually, she found a way in and curled herself up in his lap. He quieted and started stroking her hair.

"Ran-chan..?" His voice was a watery whisper, and it frightened her. "Tell me something, anything, please. Tell me why I jus' freaked out. Please."

"You made it your mission," her voice was as quiet as his, if not more so. "to make it so I would never have to cry again." The faintest whisper, insubstantial.

"Oh."

_To hell with it all; she was telling him._

"Once upon a time, there was a little girl."

"What?" He seemed confused that she was telling him a bedtime story. She ignored him.

"She lived in a place where nobody had to eat, but for some strange reason, she was hungry."

He realized what she was doing and fell silent.

"She was wandering around after having been kicked out of the last village she came to as a dirty street rat, and she was alone. All of a sudden, three men came walking down the road. They were men who had sworn to protect the people, and even if they weren't always kind to the street rats, they wouldn't hurt her anymore than a swift kick to the ribs if she spoke to them.

"So she relaxed. She wasn't afraid of them. They came, slowly down the road, but as soon as they passed her, they _shun_—they jumped back to her and restrained her."

"Flash step." Gin sucked in a sharp breath, realizing what he had said. "What—?"

She continued as though she hadn't heard him. "She was a fierce little wildcat though, even if she was weak from hunger, and she scratched and kicked the men. One of them decided that it would be easier if they," she swallowed, "if they broke her spirit first, before... whatever they were going to do."

Gin's eyes widened, and he tightened his grip around her, a small moment of protection. His lean, compact muscles spasming slightly under the thin cotton of his t-shirt. She rushed on quickly, not sure why she was telling him all of this now. "But the tallest man said it wouldn't do to hurt her too much or she'd run crying to the nearest village. He was the kindest of the men, and even though he worked for a very bad man, he had had a daughter who was killed in a Hollow attack, and he didn't want them to... do anything to her."

"What's a Hollow, Ran-chan?"

"A monster. A Hollow is a monster who eats people. Anyway, the other man grumbled, but he did as the tall man said. However, he still beat her up. He punched her and made her bleed sometimes, until she was too tired to fight back.

"Then they," she tried to swallow again, but her throat had gone dry. She hadn't expected having to relive these moments again for the rest of her life. "They took her... her energy. It was excruciatingly painful, and though they didn't take all of it. They took enough of it that she couldn't move. They dumped her on the side of the dirt road, and they left her for dead.

"But a boy came down the road that no one traveled, and he offered her a dried persimmon. She found out that what they stolen was her Spiritual Power, and that her _reiatsu_ was the reason she was always hungry. The boy took her back to his shack in the woods, and she lived there with him for a long time. Even if he sometimes left for days, she always knew that he would come back. What she didn't know was that the boy had seen the strange men take her _reiatsu_ with them."

She stopped, too overcome with emotions to continue. She had never told the story aloud before, and as the shafts of afternoon sunlight turned pink and colored the distant trees into silhouettes, the experience began to take it's toll.

"It's okay, Ran-chan. You don't have to keep going right now."

She nodded and yawned, settling into his chest and not caring a whit whether anyone would notice her missing from Soul Society.

* * *

**I hope I didn't go too OOC with this one... Oh well, I like it. Have a nice day!**


	5. Suspected

**Why hello there! The next chapter is here! I'm actually super ahead in this story, but I'm trying to portion it out. The introduction of ****_other characters_**** is in this chapter. Not OC's (thank goodness), but actual, honest-to-goodness Bleach characters! Yay! I hope you guys don't hate me too much for the cliffhangers. Not so much in this chapter, but I just wrote one and I kind of hated myself for you guys. But it's so fun and suspenseful and wow, I am talking too much.**

**Disclaimer and review statement apply! Enjoy!**

* * *

Rangiku awoke in a strange room with a familiar smell. She realized she was still in a _gigai_ and bolted upright, screaming all manner of incoherent curses as a look at the clock cordially informed her that she was six hours late to work _and_ she would have to open a _Senkaimon_ to get there, thereby announcing to everybody in Soul Society who cared that she had spent the night in the world of the living.

And unfortunately, the people who cared were the people who she_ least_ wanted to know. All of a sudden she stopped, realizing whose house she had slept in, and also the fact that she was still fully clothed.

"Shit."

She walked quickly out of the simple room and into the kitchen (or rather, she liked to think she moved quickly; she was actually a little preoccupied with seeing where Gin lived now. But it was not stalking his house. Not in any way, shape, or form. Nope), where a note on the counter and a kettle of boiling water on the stove alerted her to the fact that she was currently alone in the house.

She picked up the mug and tea bag left out for her and poured some water in, not even surprised that Gin had left a container of honey out on the counter for her instead of milk or sugar. She sat down and set to the task of deciphering Gin's illegible handwriting.

_Hello, Ran-chan!_

_I left you some black tea, and if you wouldn't mind locking the door when you luw_ (actually it was probably leave). _There's a key in your left sko_ (she puzzled over this one for a while before checking her shoes to see if her hunch was correct. It was.), _and you can keep it in case you ever want to drop by! ^_^_

_Love,_

_Gin_

She wasn't quite sure what the strange creature at the end of the message was supposed to be, but it reminded her slightly of a mix between a rabbit and a wolf.

She pulled a pen out of her purse and flipped the note over, trying to ignore the buzz that tingled the back of her neck and fingertips when she read his salutation. Scribbling out the last remains of a very strange grocery list (seriously, who bought _cat food_ when they didn't even have a cat?), she wrote a quick reply and left.

She kept the key.

* * *

She almost made it back to her apartment before she was hit by an icy breath of air that felt absolutely furious. And a little bit worried. But mostly furious.

She cringed and slumped on the ground, trying to feign drunkenness.

"Matsumoto. You are awake. Get up." Hitsugaya-_taichou_ was obviously trying to keep his anger in check, though his _reiatsu_ was still fluctuating enough to cool the air by about twenty degrees.

She stood up and staggered. Next trick was a hangover. She shielded her eyes with her hand.

"_Taichoooou_... Don't yell so loudly..." She shot a glimpse at him from under her fingers. Hitsugaya-_taichou_ was neither amused nor fooled.

"Matsumoto. Why on earth are you," he ticked the points off on his fingers, "opening a _Senkaimon_ in broad daylight while wearing those World of the Living clothes, not showing up for work immediately with an excuse, and pretending you are drunk in front of me, one of the few people who can actually tell when you are drunk or just being lazy?" He glared, but it was obvious that he was concerned as well. It was kind of cute, actually.

"I have no excuse, _taichou_." She stood up straight and stared at him gravely, any hint of silliness or pretending gone from her tone and posture.

He sighed, unsure, it seemed, of what to do. Reluctantly, he answered her. "Then, as I am sure you are aware, Matsumoto-_fukutaichou_, I will be forced to put you on temporary probation, meaning no long-term missions outside of _Seireitei_, no visits to the World of the Living, and a period of at least a month residing in the quarters assigned to your rank, as opposed to the small apartment you frequent." He looked up at her and scrutinized her face for a reaction. He got one.

Rangiku's eyes widened, and a flash of panic momentarily left her senseless and hasty. Right after she had honestly begun to allow herself happiness with this forbidden man, it was taken away by her own carelessness.

"No! I mean, sir, I have no... um, valid excuse. Because well... It is unacceptable behaviour in an officer of the Gotei Court Guardian Squads. You see, I have a friend... Well, more than a friend, maybe... And, um... I accidentally stayed over last night—not intentionally, mind you—and I offer my most sincere apologies, sir! Just please don't retain me, I—"

"MATSUMOTO." She looked up from her position kneeling on the ground, into which she had awkwardly dropped after realizing that she was in some way apologizing and also pleading with him.

"Very well. You have an excuse, though an awful one at that. I will not retain you, though I will implement a temporary dock in salary to dissuade you from ever trying this again, though I doubt you would in any case." He looked at her worriedly, and she momentarily entertained thoughts of what kind of father he would make. "Kind," she muttered decisively, "angry and irritable and maybe a bit too strict, but definitely kind."

"Excuse me, Matsumoto?" She almost would have laughed at the bewildered face her lovable _taichou_ if it had not been for the circumstance of their current meeting. Several unseated officers had come upon the strange tableau the two of them made, but they had all quickly backtracked, shooting furtive glances back at their lieutenant.

Suddenly she did laugh, not exactly sure why, except that the mood was too strange and she had (kind of) received permission to go back to the World of the Living sometime in the future. To see _him_ again.

"Matsumoto..." her captain growled, but the chilly blast of air receded as they fell back into more natural territory.

"Nothing, _taichou_," she said, standing. "Just thinking how messed up your kids will be." She glanced at him slyly. "You and Hinamori's, that is."

Hitsugaya took an involuntary step back, heat rising to his cheeks and contrasting with his hair to hilarious effect. He grumbled and leaned forward with his hands fisted at his sides. "MATSUMOTO!"

She laughed in her high, lovely way as she turned and began walking the remaining distance to her apartment. She would have to be more careful, but all was well. She hadn't been fired, or even retained. She would be able to see him again.

She stopped abruptly, realizing. _She would have to continue the story for him_. Her steps hiccuped, but she kept walking, though her mood had dampened slightly since the revelation.

The unusual hush that often accompanied captain-level _shunpo_ and the swish of a _haori_ were the only things that alerted her to her captain's presence at her back before he began to speak, quietly, and more worriedly than he had previously let on.

"I hope you're not too serious about this, Matsumoto. I got away without retaining you this time, but if it happens again, you'll be under surveillance. And if he's special enough for you to be late, you might want to think of distancing yourself. The only reason Kuchiki-san has gotten away with it is that she's interested in _Ichigo_, and it's likely he will end up a shinigami anyway in a few years."

Rangiku turned, making eye contact gravely. "I know, _taichou_. It's just..." she sighed and turned away, tangling her hands in her hair and leaning her head against a support beam. She was angry and helpless as a her eyes became glossy with tears, and she turned back to her captain reluctantly.

"Matsumoto...?" His eyes widened slightly, and he looked vaguely alarmed. "Are you...?" He hesitated, taking a step forward and reaching out a tentative hand.

"I'm sorry... I can't tell... I have to go..." She flashed off, more uncertain than she had been before and cursing the residual emotional exhaustion from the evening before.

_What am I going to do..._ She pointedly ignored the tears lost in the wind behind her.

* * *

She had barely finish adjusting her hair before she heard a knock at her door.

She sighed and began walking over, opening the door a bit and pasting on a smile. "Hello? Ah! Ukitake-_taichou_!"

The captain of the thirteenth division smiled warmly. "Hello, Matsumoto-_fukutaichou_. How are you today?"

"I'm doing well! How are you? Are you even supposed to be out, yet?" She was lying about her current state, but he didn't need to know that. She controlled her _reiatsu_ to reflect her statement. If she was lucky, he wouldn't ask too many questions.

"I'm doing much better, thank you." Ukitake-_taichou_ had suffered a severe bout of his illness a few weeks past, and there had even been speculation as to whether Kuchiki-san would be ready to assume temporary captain duties. "I thought the fresh air would do me some good, instead of being cooped up all day in my room. Would you care to take a walk with me?"

Rangiku was wary. She had never really gotten to know the captain of the thirteenth; only by association with Kuchiki-san and Nanao had she gotten to know him at all. It didn't seem like much of a request to her though.

"Of course."

They meandered through the gardens adjacent to the Tenth, chatting about nothing. Rangiku was still wary, but she had relaxed enough to seem politely interested in the sickly captain's small talk. He spoke of his illness and the Thirteenth, and Rangiku found herself becoming more animated and interested as she felt the possibility of understanding what life in another squad was like.

She was interested enough, in fact, that she almost didn't notice when they passed into a less-trodden and more secluded part of the gardens. She had allowed Ukitake-_taichou_ to lead, as he had initiated the stroll, but few people passed into this part of the gardens. And really, she barely knew him.

"Ukitake-_taichou_," she interrupted, "I really should be getting back to work. I'm sorry to cut our conversation short, but there are a few complicated transfers that require my attention at the moment."

"Of course." He smiled warmly. "Just one more thing, Matsumoto-_fukutaichou_."

She froze, as she had already been in the process of turning away from this unsettling moment.

"I was in the library the other day, the _Daireishokairo_, and I saw one of the attendants filling out a request."

Rangiku's heart stopped in her chest. _No._

"So few people are interested in the information in the _Daireishokairo_ that I was curious to see who had requested data."

He looked her straight in the eye. "One Matsumoto Rangiku requested a volume on soul reincarnation." His smile was shallow, barely there. "For reasons of _Personal Interest_. That is a rather open-ended reason, is it not, _fukutaichou_? Are you planning on writing a paper?"

"Ah, no... sir. I was simply curious."

"Alright." His normal smile was back. "Well, I'll see you later, then, Matsumoto-_fukutaichou_."

She turned to leave and was almost at the high gate before he stopped her one more time.

"Ah, one _last_ thing, Matsumoto-san. I heard you barely escaped being retained this morning. You came back from meeting someone in the World of the Living, I believe."

She started. "Oh no, sir. I accidentally fell asleep while on leave." Her entire body was tense.

"Of course. Just remember, Matsumoto-_fukutaichou_, that it would be a grievous offense if you were found doing anything that could endanger Soul Society, especially in our precarious state at the moment." He looked at her sadly, and his voice had lost the mistrust from previously. Now, he only seemed sad for her, and a bit worried.

She briefly wondered how much the old captain had sensed from her, and images of him and her, of _them_, momentarily captured her mind's eye in their sweet intensity. She could not lose that.

"I know, sir. I would never intentionally endanger the Soul Society." She turned and ran.

Her eyes were dry, and her face felt empty without the tears in this instance as she _shunpo_-ed back to her rooms. He suspected her. Even worse, depending on what he had read from her _reiatsu_... she had been completely drenched in Gin's weak signature after accidentally staying the night. And the fluctuations of her own _reiatsu_ might have been enough to give her away anyway to someone as skilled as Ukitake-_taichou_.

She realized, in that instant, that her heart was not doing any of the activities usually associated with what she was feeling now. No painful constrictions, no hammering in time with the pound of blood in her ears. She placed her hand over her heart.

No, the beats were slow and deliberate, portioning time out until her luck would run out. The executioner's heavy footfalls were coming ever closer, and he did not rush because he knew he would eventually catch her; it was fated, after all. The bliss could not last.

No, Rangiku's heart beat with the lethargic tempo of dread, and her breath stank of fear.

* * *

**Did you like it? I hope you did. I also hope I didn't go too OOC on Ukitake-****_taichou_**** and Hitsugaya-****_taichou_****. In case anyone was wondering (and/or actually reads these things), the pairing hints above were intentional! I do ship IchiRuki, though I have respect for IchiHime-shippers and others. I actually ****_don't_**** ship HitsuHina, but there is like, a point-five-percent chance that HitsuKarin will happen, so I'm trying to like it more.**

**Ta for now!**


	6. Remember Him Not

**Hello! An update that technically should be split into a couple of chapters is here! It's a little bit sad when the month changes on FanFiction because then, the traffic stats look so empty... (I'm a little obsessed with looking at traffic statistics)**

**Just when we thought things were settling down to a rhythm of sad stories and happy moments for Ran-chan... I (shamefully) used an idea from Bleach Lists (check it out if you can handle the swears and innuendo; BLG is hilarious) about how **** (see end of chap for spoilers) finds out. The actual list is "How various Bleach couples are found out." I feel really bad about it, but I couldn't get the idea out of my head. **

**Reviews are lovely, and Bleach ins't mine. Feel free to edit me, though I play with sentence structure often. Enjoy!**

* * *

"Gin, this is very important. Gin, listen to me Gin."

"Hmm?" She could visualize the face he was making on the other end of the phone easily. He had been happily chattering on in his unfortunately mesmerizing accent ever since she had called him.

"I am coming over—" She was immediately interrupted by excited Gin sounds, which she forcefully shushed.

"I am coming over, but I can't stay long, and I especially can't sleep over. I almost got fired last time."

He quieted instantly. "I'm sorry, Ran-chan."

"No, it's alright," she rushed on, "it was really unavoidable, given the circumstances."

There was a brief moment of silence on the other end, before:

"Well, that's alright then. D'ya want me ta pick you up?"

"No, I'll manage, but thank you. I'll see you in about a half an hour, if that's okay?"

She could hear the smile in his voice, "That'd be perfect, Ran-chan."

* * *

She walked the last two blocks to his apartment, slightly hindered by the multiple cups of coffee she was in the process of transporting.

She banged her head on the intercom, hoping that at least one of the buttons she pushed would call him.

"Hello?"

"Um, who is this?"

"Hello?"

"Ran-chan!"

She waited as the other voices grumbled at the interruption and disconnected.

"Gin, could you come down? I have coffee and groceries." She had felt slightly silly buying the groceries, like she was pretending to be somebody she couldn't be, but she had noticed a severe deficiency in rice, fruit, vegetables, and sake the other time she had been in his home, and also an oversupply of instant ramen.

God, she hated instant ramen.

The door opened, and Gin quickly captured the coffee. Rangiku straightened herself out and followed him up the stairs.

Seeing as Gin's hands were full of coffee, Rangiku shrugged the plastic grocery bags back to her elbow joints in order to free up her hands; she unlocked the door and pretended not to notice the dopey grin the man beside her got on his face when the key came out of her own purse.

After putting away the groceries and hunting through his cabinets to find something that resembled a cutting board, she began making a dinner with some of the vegetables, the detestable noodles, pork, and some random spices she found in his pantry.

"Well, Ran-chan, as much as I'm glad ta have you over, why _are_ ya here?"

She shot him a look, which he didn't seem to understand as quickly as she would have liked him to. Finally, she sighed and rolled her eyes.

"I have a... a story to tell you," she mumbled, avoiding eye contact. There was a long pause.

"Oh."

Gin busied himself trying to help her with the ramen, though he really just ended up making a mess of the kitchen. After rescuing the final bunch of green onions from his clumsy cutting skills, she broke the silence.

"Now I can see why you have nothing but instant ramen in your house."

"Yep," he grinned. "That's why ya should come over more often, Ran-chan."

She rolled her eyes again, and he laughed. They slipped easily back into the routine of laughter, anecdotes, teasing, and the occasional allusion to something deeper. This routine was quickly becoming second nature, and it was so much nicer than the relationship she had had (or rather, not had) with him the last few months before he left. This was just one more reason she couldn't lose him again.

She had started compiling a list in her head, almost unconsciously, of reasons she could not leave him or lose him (or both?) again. The contents ranged from her mental health (and his? She hated herself for the hopeful tone the voice in her head took on when she thought that) to the way his laugh had changed post-Aizen to the fact that he would never eat anything but instant ramen if she was gone.

Gin pulled a card table out from a closet somewhere, and draped a chintzy tablecloth over it with a flourish. Though the atmosphere was still slightly muted, they managed to chat relatively cheerily about anything and everything, as was their habit. Well, almost everything.

Finally, the food was gone, and Gin stood up to get some ice cream as Rangiku broke open the sake. By a sort of silent mutual consent, they moved over to the cracked leather couch with stuffing oozing out at the seams.

By the same kind of wordless agreement, they laid down so that Rangiku was facing away from Gin, her head on his stomach.

They sat there, the atmosphere weighing heavy and muting over them like someone had draped a large piece of velvet over the world.

After the shadows from the small window in the corner began gild into orange, she spoke.

"Once upon a time, there was a man who wanted to be a god."

"A man?! I thought we were talkin' about a girl, Ran—"

"He had a higher level of intelligence than almost everybody in the world, the soul world and the human world included. His plans were preconceived years before they were realized, and when they did come to fruition, they were devastating.

"But I'm getting ahead of myself. His Plan, his final plan, was still in the groundwork stages.

"I'm told he had a little glass. There was a jewel at the bottom, a jewel with an intellect. He had made this jewel with his superior mind, but it was not complete. He had made this jewel to have a truly horrible purpose: the ability to grant wishes.

"He kind of knew how to complete it, by feeding it, but he didn't know what to feed it. So he fed it _reiatsu_, Spiritual Power."

"Yours," Gin breathed.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Gin." She pulled the top out of the first sake bottle. Frowning, she poured a little into the ice cream, tasting it thoughtfully. The man behind her snorted a laugh, though she knew he would have laughed outright had it not been for the velvet-cloaked city and the sputtering daylight room.

"I'm telling you a story about a boy, not me." She decided sake and ice cream was rather a good combination and poured some more in.

"Anyway, he fed a lot of _reiatsu_ to it, but it wasn't enough. He had started testing it by trying to turn his colleagues into monsters. He failed, but it kind of worked, and he used this event to put the blame on another man."

She stopped, trying to order her thoughts.

"This man also had an ability that nobody else had. He could manipulate the senses to make people experience the reality which he wanted them to experience. He used this ability to make everybody think he was in the _Seireitei_, when really, he was turning Hirako-_taichou_ and Muguruma-_taichou_ and all the others into Hollows."

She paused again, realizing that she was tending farther away from the storybook feel of her story.

"Now, the man who the bad man had placed the blame on was also a genius. In fact, later, when the bad man's plan worked, the genius and an incredibly strong boy would defeat him, one by strength and the other by intellect.

"This other genius had also made one of these jewels, but he was horrified by what he had created and he... tried to hide it." She stopped to take a breath and realized that Gin's hands were shaking. "Gin?"

"Kuchiki Rukia. Soukyoku Hill. Kuchiki. Who is Kuchiki? Who is Kuchiki, Ran-chan!?"

She pushed down the rising sense of dread within her when the wisps of his _reiatsu_ began to strengthen slightly. Before now, the... _wisps_, for lack of a better term, had floated about him like a too-big coat. They seemed to widen, in that moment, and become more solid and more _Gin_. Less ill-fitting.

"L-let me finish the story, Gin," her voice shook slightly.

"When the first man found the other man's jewel, he fed it to his own, and it was completed. He took two of his... subordinates... with him and left for the land where the monsters lived. Since he was so much stronger than them he subjugated them. He used his superior power to grant their deepest desires and make them stronger. He created an army for himself."

The light had all but faded from the room, and it seemed as though time itself had stopped outside of the room. An ethereal hush lay over the city, even the sound of the clock ticking in the corner seeming to fade into the background.

Suddenly, it became oppressive. She couldn't take it anymore, and Rangiku, lacking a better plan, picked up the ice cream container and dropped it onto the floor.

It made a significantly loud enough noise to jolt them out of their stupor, but luckily only a few splatters of melted sake-cream splashed onto the cheap wood floor.

Neither of them spoke, and neither of them stood to clean the floor.

* * *

She stepped out of the _Senkaimon_ about two hours later (eleven o'clock) and stretched. Though she hadn't realized it at the time, she had become stiff from the hours of staring into the dull, beige walls of his house. No, maybe they had been staring through them. Whatever.

But it wasn't whatever; for some reason, it mattered tonight. Maybe it was the events of the night, or maybe it was the aching emptiness of the night sky without stars tonight, but all of a sudden, Rangiku found herself sitting on her butt, crying in the middle of one of the many open places built into the maze of _Seireitei_.

The spirit realm was silent when she finally stopped crying, and she found herself staring into the spaces between the stars.

_The starland. Where Gin promised he'd take me someday._ She made a pathetic attempt at a frown. _Old Gin, that is._

At that moment, she felt an intense desire to have him remember. It was the first time that she had allowed herself to want, because before, wanting had been the thing that would kill him and turn him into a Hollow. _Could kill him,_ she admonished herself.

She wanted him to remember the starland, the faded tunics with edges ragged, the sweet buns he used to steal on their birthdays. She wanted him to remember the necklace he'd given her when she was feeling particularly hopeless, the old wolf that sometimes visited them after realizing they were good for a warm place to sleep, and the first time he saw her at the Academy.

Rangiku realized that she was crying again, and she began the slow walk to her apartment. Somehow, there was still something in her thoughts that she didn't want him to remember, beyond the fear of him transforming into a Hollow that wanted to eat her and the fear of having to kill—no, _purify_—him and finding herself unable.

Rangiku attempted a dramatic sigh at the disturbingly deep and involved thoughts that were going through her head at the moment, but it came out watery and with a bit of a hiccup, and she laughed at herself.

It made sense, though. She wasn't dumb, by any stretch of the imagination; she was actually quite clever, just lazy. But it had always been Gin who, without uttering a word, pushed her to thinking of morality (_if someone does bad things for a good reason, does it make him a bad person? Is he a hero or a villain?_), higher Presence(s) (_is there somewhere beyond even here, where the bodies of heroes lie, because it seems almost like he's still here_), Love with a capital 'l,' etc.

She arrived at her apartment and let herself in, pausing to check her reflection in the mirror. She spent a moment quietly hating everybody who managed to look beautiful when they cried and then decided that what she really needed was a night with the other lieutenants and some sake. It would be fine, seeing as she had long perfected the skill of keeping secrets through the sake.

She did a quick _reiatsu_ scan before realizing that Kira, Hisagi, Ikkaku, Yumichika, and Renji were already out at their favorite sake bar in the twenty-eighth.

She _shunpo_-ed over and bought some sake to bring over. You could always crash a drinking party as long as you brought more booze.

Ikkaku, Yumichika, and Kira were already pretty stoned, but everybody was glad when they saw her. She was glad the sake she brought was just a bonus because she needed to be wanted at the moment. She sat down on a low cushion and loosely clumped the sake bottles in the middle of the table, one of which was immediately pounced on by Renji.

After a few drinks (and a few more), Hisagi sniffed the air. "Yooou... smell different."

She already had enough alcohol in her bloodstream to keep her from jumping, but if she hadn't already drunk two-thirds of her own bottle, she surely would have given herself away.

"I just got back from the human world," she said. The group nodded and turned back to their sake, but because of a slight alcohol-induced paranoia, she felt the need to finish the conversation.

"How do you know what I smell like, Hisagi?" she teased, and he blushed, while the others laughed. She always made sure to keep her voice steady except for a few drawn-out vowels when she was drunk.

Rangiku took another sip from her jug, having deemed the small cups too limiting after a while, as always. As she did, she took a sweeping gaze over the group and noticed Kira, who was still frowning.

"What's up, Kiraaa?" She scooted over next to him and draped an arm over his shoulder, the jug at the end hanging loosely from her fingertips.

She smiled dreamily; she had always liked her wrists and fingers. They were probably her favorite feature of hers, despite what other people might think. They were the only part of her that she considered elegant, and they were very—

Suddenly Kira jumped away from her as if he'd been burned. He stood over her with a look that was completely terrified and almost a bit feral. She looked up at him, confused.

"Why." His voice was the darkest whisper she had ever heard. "_Why do you smell like him?!_"

She paled, and even in the gloomy interior of the bar she knew he could tell. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Perhaps she really had imbibed a little too much alcohol, or perhaps the fear of discovery was too potent in the night without stars, but suddenly, she was about to vomit.

"Excuse me," she mumbled, lips half closed and curled over her teeth, as she stumbled out into the cool night. She vomited in the alley behind the place, heaving over and over until her lips burned with acid. She rarely vomited, and she hated the experience.

She began stumbling away, but after a few steps, she righted herself, walking slowly to keep from falling down.

Eventually she found a nice bench in a patch of grass and sat down. She would have to deal with Kira later. What the hell would she tell him? She held the imagined conversation in her head, grimacing.

_"Oh, yeah. Sorry, Kira. Gin is alive and in the World of the Living, but he doesn't have much in the way of memories. He remembered your name, though!"_

A few more minutes and she reluctantly got to her feet, making her way back to her apartment. She changed and brushed her teeth and hair, and it was only once she was lying awake in bed, staring into the ceiling, or through it, or whatever, that she realized.

_I want him to remember everything but Aizen._

* * *

In a small bathroom in Japan, a man with silver hair was writing. His cramped handwriting flowed over the pages, faster and faster, until it overflowed, and then he was writing on the walls and the mirror and the floor and the sink until the writing part of his marker disappeared into the holding part because he had pressed too hard.

He sat back against the wall and put his head in his hands, with his elbows resting on his bent knees.

"Izuru, Ran-chan, Tousen, Gin, Kuchiki. Hollows, shinigami, z-zanpakuto, arranker—no! arrancar." It was a feverish chant of remembered snippets.

"Who am I, Ran-chan?" He swiveled around to kneeling, smudges of permanent black ink decorating his hands and jeans.

He looked at the marks on the wall, watching them travel around, all pointing back to the center. Kuchiki, Soukyoku, Hougyoku, Urahara, Vizard/Visored... All pointing back to one marked character.

"Who is _he_?"

_Aizen._

* * *

**Spoiler is Kira, in case anyone didn't get that. BLG came up with the idea of poor Izuru recognizing his old captain's smell.**

**On a side note, I hope everybody had a great New Year's!**

**I want to thank all of my fantastic reviewers. Your comments make me so happy, and they encourage me to post more frequently! An extra special thank you goes to agoodcupoftea for the in-depth critique and encouragement I received. It was much appreciated, and it prompted me to change something that has been bothering me for a while. Thank you to agoodcupoftea and everybody who has commented, followed, and added this to your list of favorites. I'm glad you're enjoying this as much as I am enjoying writing it!**

**Wow, that was long. Have a nice day!**


	7. Love, War, and Loyalty

**I'm so sorry this took so long! School started back, and I suddenly had more things I needed to do. As compensation, I shall give you one-and-one-third chapters. It is ****_only_**** one-and-one-third because the other two thirds are sad, and the last chapter I posted ended sadly, I think.**

**There's a minor OC in this section; she will never actually reappear. I'm not really sure why I stuck her in here. I think I wanted to test my ability to write fight scenes, so I would really appreciate feedback on that, even if it is a rather less action-based battle and more one of strategy.**

**Bleach and all associated characters, scenes, and paraphernalia belongs to Tite Kubo! Or is it Kubo Tite? I've always been really confused about his name, since people switch between putting the family name first or not...**

**Anyway! I absolutely love getting reviews, and they honestly do give me an itch for a pen (actually, an itch for a keyboard). Only leave one if you feel compelled to, however. Flames and edits are appreciated; they help me grow as a writer, and though I edit, I am only human! Enjoy!**

* * *

For the third time that morning, Rangiku found a reason to leave the office. She had delivered paperwork to the Fourth and the Ninth, and now she was running a message, one which would have disastrous effects if intercepted, to Ukitake-_taichou_.

She sighed. On top of the whole business with Gin, Soul Society was also in an extended state of emergency; extended, that is, from Aizen's time at large. And now, she had the whole thing with Kira to deal with. That was why she had been escaping the office so often today.

Rouge groups of Arrancars, left purposeless after Aizen's defeat and capture (but no longer satisfied with aimless wandering), had banded together. The smarter ones had established small communities, and these were left pretty much alone by the Soul Society. There were even rumors that Harribel Tia had taken over the queenship of Hueco Mundo and the remaining Arrancars who chose to follow her.

The less intelligent groups, however, had started trying to attack Soul Society, for what purpose no one knew. This, along with the ability of Vasto Lorde-level Arrancar to open Garganta directly into Soul Society, had left _Seireitei_ a flurry of heavy training, paperwork, and barely-disguised panic.

Even with the re-addition of Hirako-_taichou_, Muguruma-_taichou_, and Otoribashi-_taichou_ to the ranks of the captains, the squads were disorganized and still weak. There had been many deaths in the past three years, for that was when the Arrancar groups had truly started to become organized.

Rangiku was jolted out of her musings by the arrival of her Problem. This was why she had been sent, instead of a low-seated officer.

"Leap, _Antílope_."

Shanyu Tokoori, the twenty-sixth Arrancar of Aizen's old group. She had become Rangiku's problem when this particular group had invaded, as she had taken direct offense to Rangiku's comment on her alliance with the _Pícaros_.

Rangiku grumbled at her appearance, though she knew this would happen.

"Growl, _Haineko_."

The girl opposite her bared her teeth in a feral grin that revealed sharply pointed canines that contrasted with her nut-brown skin.

"Why would an antelope have the teeth of a carnivore?" Rangiku wondered aloud. Shanyu's grin melted off her face and she snarled, vaulting forward and vanishing in _sonido_ halfway through.

Rangiku waited for the breath of air that would signify Shanyu's stab. The problem with this girl was that she was too fast. Rangiku caught only the barest glimpses of bone mask and burnt red hair swirling around her.

The air changed, and Rangiku brought her hands together to solidify the mass of metal shards and block the thrust aimed a little off-center at the back of her neck.

The fight picked up at that, and Rangiku began spreading a thin layer of ash around her. She held it in place, while simultaneously spreading more farther away in a sphere around her. Eventually, she was rewarded with a low shout and a thin stream of blood. The ash at nine o'clock shifted, and Rangiku slashed downward.

Shanyu shouted and fell to the ground, groaning. Leaving the ash in the air cautiously, Rangiku kicked the kneeling girl in the wound. Shanyu cried out, and a tear glimmered before splattering on the ground. It was merciless, but it got the wanted result. Shanyu crumpled, and Rangiku knocked her out with a quick blow to the head.

She was about to dispatch her but hesitated. Unsure why, she took a detour to the Fourth and dropped her off. Injured and unconscious, she looked no more than twelve. Isane smiled at her in understanding before taking Shanyu away.

She delivered the message to Ukitake-_taichou_ swiftly and left, pointedly ignoring the searching, sympathetic look he gave her.

She opened the door to the office and found it empty. Closing the door and walking to her captain's desk, she read his note. _Emergency captain's meeting. Will be back in an hour. Please sort paperwork. DO IT._

She smiled fondly; her _taichou_ would never change. The door opened behind her, and she whirled, drawing her _zanpakuto_ instinctively.

"Matsumoto-_fukutaichou_."

Kira's voice was frosty, and Rangiku noticed keenly the emphasis on her rank.

"Ah... um, Kira. Uh, are you looking for Hitsugaya-_taichou_? He's at the captain's... meeting..." She trailed off; his eyes were dark and his _reiatsu_ was practically palpable.

"Matsumoto-_fukutaichou_. Why did you smell like my ex-captain." It was barely a question.

"Kira... He... I—"

"How could you? How _could_ you?!" His glare cracked, and his _reiatsu_ slipped away to linger in the air, forlornly.

"You... I thought you hated him in the end," she whispered, hugging herself tightly.

"I-I do. But I wouldn't... I _couldn't_ out him, or even you. Is he...?"

"You'll come with me next time."

He looked up at her in surprise and something that looked heartbreakingly like hope. She wouldn't be able to say no again.

"I'll just warn you, though... her memories are gone. She just has little feelings about certain things."

Kira looked at her in confusion at the sudden change in pronouns, but he froze when he felt Hitsugaya's _reiatsu_ pulse outside the door.

"Of course. Does she remember me at all?" Kira hid terror well in his eyes like portals to the stormy sea. The door opened.

"Who?" Hitsugaya-_taichou_ walked in.

"_Taichou_! Oh, nobody. I met an old human friend of Kira's and mine in the World of the Living who we thought had died in a Hollow attack. Her name's Chino, and she has the most darling accent you've ever heard. We used to go on such wonderful shopping trips together..."

"Wonderful, I'm glad she's alive. Matsumoto, have you sorted the paperwork yet?" He arched an eyebrow at her.

"Ha! All of this reminiscing has made me... really need to use the restroom! Bye, Kira!"

"MATSUMOTO!"

* * *

"You brought Izuru?! Why, that's great Ran-chan!"

"Good, meet you at the coffee shop in ten, then?"

"Of course!"

She clicked her phone shut. Kira stared at it, half in terror and half in that achingly sad hint of hope with no expectations.

She smiled sadly and started walking.

* * *

"Izuru!"

Gin waved, from a different table with three chairs.

"Hiya, Ran-chan! Thanks for bringing Izuru by."

Kira stood stock-still in the doorway, before Rangiku dragged him over. "H-he's ah... he's alive."

Jonathan brought their coffees over, and Gin paid him cheerily.

"This is our friend Kino Izuru!"

"_Kira_ Izuru!" Rangiku smacked his hand. "I've told you that before, Gin."

Kira's head snapped up at the familiar address between his two companions, and then he cautiously waved at Jonathan. The barista smiled and nodded, ambling back to the counter after a moment of silence. Gin pulled out a brown paper bag and unrolled the top, handing a dried persimmon to Rangiku and then offering one to Kira. "How've ya been, Izuru?"

Cringing, Kira took the persimmon and raised it to his mouth. "F-f-fine."

"Well ya don't have to eat it if ya don't want to! Won't hurt my feelings any."

Kira looked up, amazed, and not for the first time, Rangiku wondered sadly what it must have been like for him to work under Gin. _No_, she thought. _Not Gin. Ichimaru._

With that thought, she tactfully pulled the conversation away from its current course and began chatting with Gin about random things. They laughed, and Rangiku occasionally said something to pull Kira into the conversation. After a while, he began offering comments of his own accord, and Gin encouraged him enthusiastically. Abruptly, Kira stood.

"I... I'm so glad you're alive. Well, not glad maybe—no! I am glad to meet you when you're so different, and I'm sorry for everything."

"I barely remember ya, Izuru, but for some reason, I don't think ya have anything ta be sorry for."

Kira blinked back tears. "I have to go," he said, turning to Rangiku. "Thank you so much for bringing me to meet him." He left, then, and Gin turned a sad and vaguely disturbed look on her.

"What did I _do_ ta that kid, Ran-chan."

Rangiku decided that there had been far too much whispering in her life as of late.

* * *

After having a nice conversation with Jonathan about the pros and cons of free university schooling when all anybody could think of was the broken man who had left two hours ago, Rangiku and Gin left for the latter's house.

They decided to walk, seeing as the weather was nice, if a little breezy, and on the way, Rangiku decided to start the next story. It was almost nine, and the days were starting to seem shorter already, so dusk had begun to gather in pools of shadow under the trees.

"Sooo..." she began, determined to set this off to a better start than the last time. "I have another story for you today." Especially since today's story was much more serious.

"Great!" Gin turned to her with his signature smile, and it seemed he had the same thought.

"Once upon a time, there was a little boy who always ran away. He did strange things, bad things sometimes, when he ran away, but he always came back."

"Well, at least there's that." Gin smiled, but the corners of his mouth were drooping.

"He lived with a girl, a girl who he had rescued. No matter what he did outside, he was always kind to her.

"Then one day, he told her he was leaving. He was going to become strong, so he could fight for her. He left, but eventually, she followed him to the Academy.

"He was what they called a _prodigy._" She smiled bitterly. "And it drove them apart."

Rangiku wrapped her thin jacket tighter around her, sending Gin a grateful look when he draped his outercoat over her shoulders.

"The boy grew up to be a man, and he became a lieutenant. He became a lieutenant to the very man whom he had seen take his friend's _reiatsu_."

"What?! Why the _hell_ would he do that?" Gin's words were quiet and controlled, but his face was furious.

"So that he could get close to him. So that he could get close to him, closer than any other person had ever gotten. So that he could find some weakness in his impenetrable defense in order to be able to kill him in a moment of non-impenetrability."

"I don't think that's a word, Ran-chan."

"Hush, I'm telling a story." She smiled anyway, to let him know she was kidding. He would have known anyway.

"_Any_way, he eventually became a captain. He took under him a lieutenant who Ai—who the bad man thought would be sufficiently... malleable."

"Izuru." The word was mournful on his tongue, and he fell against a wall, sliding down until he sat with his head lying on his crossed arms. Rangiku sat cross-legged beside him, putting a hand on his forearm.

"Together, they and one other man orchestrated a scheme to get the genius-who-had-been- framed's jewel. Once the got it, they left for the world of monsters.

"The bad man amassed his army and invaded the land of humans; a fierce battle ensued. The bad man started evolving, but in a seemingly hopeless moment, when the boy-turned-man had to save the girl-turned-woman from the bad man, he tried to kill him."

"Tried, Ran-chan? Did he not die? Was it all for nothing?" Gin's voice was small.

"The good man who was pretending to be a bad man hurt the real bad man a massive amount, and he stole the jewel from the bad man's chest, because he had absorbed it.

"But then, the bad man made another evolution, and he was fine. He... he killed the good man who wasn't really a bad man."

"Did the bad man die, Ran-chan?"

"He was defeated later by the genius and the boy whose life he had messed with. The... society that had him as a prisoner then forced him to stay, tied to a _reiatsu_-sealing chair far, far underground for twenty thousand years. He didn't die, though."

"Your face was the last thing I saw before I died, wasn't it?" He didn't lift his head, but slowly, gaining in intensity, he began to shake. "I can still see it, Ran-chan. You were _crying_."

Rangiku sucked in a breath as he began to shake uncontrollably. But this wasn't human shaking.

"No! Gin, no. Look at me, Gin. Look at me! Don't turn, please!"

His body forcibly expelled his soul, and the chain of fate glittered dully in the light of streetlamps. With a horrific noise, the chain rent itself in two. Gin gasped. "I... can't... breathe... Ran-chan."

"You can breathe! Just wait a second you'll get used..." she trailed off as the circular plate began to pull away from his chest by an invisible force. "No!"

"Hurts... Ran-chan." He grimaced and then cried out in pain. "There's... some-thing... Aagh!" he was interrupted by a further pull on his chain of fate. All of a sudden, his _reiatsu_ began flooding into him, and he glowed purple for a second.

"I... have... ta... remember!" He was sweating too much. Rangiku had started physically trying to hold his chain of fate in place, though she knew it was futile. She started crying, and his eyes snapped to her face. "No! Don't cry. Please!"

A Hollow roared behind them, attracted by the almost captain-level _reiatsu_ streaming around them, and with a final sob, Rangiku threw her arms around Gin. He stiffened.

"_Shinso_."

* * *

**So instead of sadness, I leave you with a massive cliffhanger. I had a little too much fun writing that part, perhaps. I also had to remind myself that ****_I_**** was the one writing the story, as I was literally jumping up and down in my chair wondering what was going to happen next.**

**I hope you enjoyed this segment, and I'll try not to drag the wait for the next chapter on too much. I am quickly running out of pre-written material, though...**

**Once again, I hope you enjoyed! Review if you want to!**


	8. Parallels of Regret

**I am so desperately sorry for the delay. School has prevented me from posting. Anyhoo. There are tons (for me) of characters in this chapter and a lot of dialogue, so ****_please_****, if you see any errors, let me know.**

**On a side note, this story has over one thousand views! That's crazy!**

**Bleach is not mine; this story is. Reviews are lovely, so post one if you feel motivated to! I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

"We appear to have several options." Kyoraku spoke calmly from his position at the captain's meeting. He had risen to the position of Captain-Commander after Yamamoto-_soutaichou_'s death after the Winter War, but he still refused to stand where the old man had stood during captain's meetings. Nobody had objected.

"What are you saying, _Soutaichou_-san? As far as I can see, there is only one option," Soi fon's voice cut sharply through the air. She had been the quickest to condemn the former traitor, and her weight was shifted over the balls of her feet; she was positively itching for a fight.

"Oh? And what is that Soi fon-_taichou_?" Ukitake's calm voice contrasted with hers extremely. She appeared to notice this, as she shifted her stance back and replied smoothly. "We kill him. He was and always will be a traitor and a threat to Soul Society."

Komamura's deep rumble disagreed. "Though he was a traitor, we have seen traitors change in the past. Indeed, he did horrible things for an honorable purpose." The tall man's eyes flashed, daring her to disagree with the sentiment. He especially was particularly educated in this subject, and she looked away.

"Still, we must consider how he would react to being reintroduced into _Seireitei_..." Otoribashi mused.

"Who said anything about _Seireitei_? We should remove the scum from the face of the earth!"

"Now, now captains. All thoughts will be taken into consideration, but hear the possibilities first." Kyoraku sighed. Being _soutaichou_ wasn't quite all it was knocked up to be.

"We could, as Soi fon-_taichou_ suggested, kill him outright and simply deal with the consequences. Those consequences being the certain loss of at least one, potentially two, strong lieutenants." There were several murmurs at discontent at that thought, and even Soi fon deflated slightly. Hitsugaya looked down, fighting to keep his face a mask of calm.

"We could bring him back into the _Gotei_ thirteen, as an unseated officer in one of the squads." Several of the captains started to raise their hands, but they were waved down; Kyoraku wasn't finished yet.

"We could throw him in the Maggots' Nest with visiting privileges, though Matsumoto-_fukutaichou_ might still lose loyalty to the organization." The Tenth Division captain looked up sharply at the direct address by name of his lieutenant, but he refrained from speaking.

"We could wait until he gets here of his own accord, then seal his powers and let him live..." Kyoraku waved his hands in the air vaguely, "somewhere. Or, we don't have to seal his powers, just banish him from the _Seireitei_.

"Or, we could just let him be in the world of the living, as I doubt he will cause any trouble when he has all he's ever wanted—" the door slammed open, and a messenger burst in to kneel in front of the captains.

"Sir! An impossible _reiatsu_ has been picked up in the world of the living. The traitor Ichimaru Gin is in the world of the living!" The hall erupted into conversation. _So much for that possibility._ Kyoraku sighed internally.

"Enough! Messenger dismissed!" The _Soutaichou_'s voice boomed out, and he was no longer the laid-back head of the meeting from before. "We will most likely be forced to leave the situation in the hands of the Central forty-six, anyway. I believe we currently have more important matters to attend to.

"Soi fon-_taichou_, Komamura-_taichou_, Hitsugaya-_taichou_, and Muguruma-_taichou_ will venture to the world of the living to capture Ichimaru-san. Meeting adjourned!"

Hitsugaya spun on his heel and began to stride out of the room, his haori billowing behind him. He would have been the first out of the meeting room, but Kyoraku spoke. "Hitsugaya-_taichou_." The other captains left, flowing around him to get to the door. When they had left, and Muguruma had closed the door with one, final sympathetic look back, he turned.

"_Soutaichou_-san."

"Hitsugaya-_taichou_..." Kyoraku began gently.

"I knew all about it. I knew from the second she came back with his signature clinging to her the first time. I was allowing her to go, and I will take the blame."

"Very kind of you, captain," Kyoraku murmured, "but unfortunately, you are lying, and I can't accept your account." Hitsugaya turned again.

"Will they kill her?" he whispered.

"I highly doubt it, Hitsugaya-san. The most they would do would be to fire her, and I doubt they would even do that. Do you want to know how I knew you were lying?" Hitsugaya angled his head slightly back to hear.

"Ichimaru-san did not have a _reiatsu_ at all until the second time Rangiku-san met him."

Hitsugaya whirled. "How do you know this?"

"I did some digging. Ukitake noticed that your lieutenant took out some data from the _Daireshokairo_ on soul reincarnation, and the two of us began pulling records from Squad twelve's monitoring system. At a certain point during her time in the world of the living, Rangiku-san would either turn her soul pager off or return here. On a few occasions, there were actually calls placed between the two. Ichimaru seemed completely harmless, however; he also seemed to have lost all his memories. At a certain point, Rangiku-san brought Kira-_fukutaichou_ with her, and Ukitake and I were simply waiting to see how the scene would play out."

Before Hitsugaya-_taichou_ could speak, Kyoraku interrupted. "I'm sorry we didn't tell you sooner; we thought it wouldn't do to add any more to your plate. Are you—?"

"I'm fine." In just over a week, his grandmother had died and Hinamori's posttraumatic stress disorder had come back in full force. He was anything but.

"You understand why we need you, of course?"

"To bring her back."

Kyoraku's face fell into the sad smile that had become almost uniform in his private time since he was appointed Captain-Commander.

"Do you need time to prepare?"

"I'm ready."

* * *

The Hollow shrieked and dissolved behind her.

Rangiku's eyes flew open, and she looked over her shoulder to watch the last particles of _reishi_ vanish into the atmosphere. They widened further as she saw the tip of a zanpakuto that was far too long to be anyone else's disappear from the edge of her periphery, and suddenly, cold hands were pulling her face back around so that he could kiss her.

She had fallen over at some point, and now she pulled herself closer to him and kissed him with six years of pain and raw emotion. After a moment, he pulled away gently. "I love you, Ran-chan."

And then they pulled him away from her, roughly enough to break the grip of her desperation, as he stumbled and allowed them to take him away without complaint. The captains had come, at least four of them, right before he had given her the words she had always wanted, to take him away.

A _Senkaimon_ opened somewhere in the sky, and when it closed, Rangiku screamed her anguish to the sky. Hitsugaya stood a mere five metres away, but he knew instinctively that they were separated by a gap he could not bridge with his emotional experience.

She screamed and sobbed and rocked herself back and forth with her head buried in her arms. Since she was still in a _gigai_, she soon attracted the attention of nearby humans, who rushed her into an ambulance with Gin's body. It gave her an excuse to scream and not speak for a while, and she cried on the floor as her body was racked with spasms.

Jonathan arrived at the hospital fifteen minutes after they had pronounced him dead without a chance of restarting his heart, and he comforted her and rubbed her back for entirely the wrong reasons. It helped to have him there, though, when Dr. Ishida coolly stated that he had died from a heart attack. _Yes,_ she thought bitterly, _an attack on his heart killed him. It woke him up, and now he's gone._

She made preparations for a funereal with Jonathan, and they set it for two days. She left then, ignoring Hitsugaya-_taichou_, and dropped her _gigai_ off at Ichigo's. She opened the _Senkaimon_ herself and only acknowledged her captain's presence when the gateway was about to close.

"Are you planning on staying here, _captain_?" Emphasis on the rank.

He followed slowly, then, and his face was stuck in an expression halfway between shock and sadness.

When they arrived in the Soul Society, it was night, and she didn't speak a word to him as she left to go to her apartment. She fell into a sake-induced sleep (there was no way she would have slept otherwise) around one in the morning, and she didn't wake up until two the next afternoon.

She didn't bother going to work.

* * *

"Kuchiki-_taichou_."

"_Soutaichou_-san." The cool noble acknowledged his presence with a short nod in his direction. "I presume you are here to talk to me about Ichimaru Gin and the upcoming trial."

Kyoraku was surprised. "Why yes, actually. How did you guess?"

Kuchiki hemmed under his breath, answering. "I am not so blind as to be unable to draw the parallels between my story and that of the former captain. I have the most personal experience with a... blunder of that type." Kuchiki Rukia's presence hung heavily in the air, though she was far enough away in the Thirteenth that even Kyoraku had to stretch his awareness to detect her _reiatsu_.

"I presume you wish me to testify?" The Kuchiki noble's voice had an unusual inflection threading through the usual cool tone. It was not quite warm, but there was deeper emotion, belied in the uncertainty of his hands, that barely reflected in his normally neutral words.

"Indeed, I would be much obliged if you did."

"I accept, of course." He hesitated, turning away to the window slightly.

"Kuchiki-_taichou_?" Kyoraku prompted.

"That is all; thank you for your time _Soutaichou_-san," he said stiffly. After a brief salutation and expression of gratitude, Kyoraku turned to leave. He had slid the door almost closed before he heard, quietly:

"Everyone deserves a second chance."


End file.
